Gerry Judah, the sculpture’s designer, said: “I wanted to design something iconic because this year is Audi’s 100th anniversary. The sculpture had to have a celebratory theme and it also had to encompass the qualities of the Audi brand: sporty, prestigious and progressive.

“I drew about 20 ideas and some had elaborate bridges with vaulted arches but somehow they didn’t have quite the right style. I then had a flash of inspiration and designed this ‘swoosh’ with a car at either end to represent Audi’s 100-year history.

“It’s made entirely of steel and although the design looks simple, it’s actually extremely complex, because the structure has to be rigid and completely balanced without the need for hundreds of supporting props."

The sculpture weighs 40 tonnes and it took two 100 tonne cranes to erect the structure and four weeks for 12 men to fabricate, build and install the structure.